A refrigerator is an appliance for keeping food items in storage in a low temperature state for a long period of time by generating cold air using a refrigerating cycle installed and supplying generated cold air to the interior of a refrigerating chamber and/or a freezing chamber.
Refrigerators may include a dispenser for dispensing ice or water without opening a door thereof. Since a dispenser dispenses water or ice without having to open the door of the refrigerator, cold air within the refrigerator does not leak to the outside during dispensing and user convenience may be enhanced.
Refrigerators may further include an ice dispensing device for dispensing ice made in an ice maker without having to open a refrigerator door. The ice dispensing device may keep a large amount of ice cubes in storage in an ice bucket as a storage chamber. When a user provides input to cause ice dispensing, a predetermined amount of ice is dispensed.
FIG. 1 illustrates an example refrigerator including a dispenser and FIG. 2 illustrates an example refrigerator including a dispenser housing installed therein. As illustrated in FIGS. 1 and 2, a refrigerator body 1 includes a refrigerating chamber and a freezing chamber.
In this example, the refrigerating chamber is a vertical space arranged in a vertical direction. Food items are stored in the refrigerating chamber at a low temperature by cold air generated by an evaporator. A plurality of shelves are horizontally installed between wall surfaces of the refrigerating chamber. A freezing chamber is defined as a vertical space next to the refrigerating chamber, in which a temperature is maintained to below 0° Celsius. The refrigerating chamber and the freezing chamber are divided horizontally by a barrier.
Namely, the refrigerating chamber is installed in the right side and the freezing chamber is installed in the left side. Doors 10 and 20 are installed in front side of the refrigerating chamber and the freezing chamber, respectively, and have a configuration including an outer door case 13 made of steel forming the exterior decor and an inner case made of a synthetic resin and installed to be spaced apart from the outer door case 13.
In addition, pigment, such as paint, or the like, is painted on a surface of the outer door case 13 to prevent a steel surface of the outer door case 13 from being exposed or tempered glass is attached to the surface of the outer door case 13. In this case, sponge, or the like, serving as a buffer may be inserted between the outer door case 13 and the tempered glass.
An insulator is provided in a space between the outer door case 13 and the inner case to insulate the refrigerating chamber with respect to the outside. A handle may be provided on a surface of the outer door case 13. The handle is installed to substantially open and close the doors 10 and 20. The doors 10 and 20 are rotated by hinges installed in left and right end portions of the refrigerator body 1 to open and close the refrigerating chamber and the freezing chamber.
A dispenser housing 30 is positioned on a front surface of the freezing chamber door 10. The dispenser housing 30 is inserted in a dispenser insertion hole 15 as a through hole defined in a middle portion of the outer door case 13, of the freezing chamber door 10, as one body. A dispenser including the dispenser housing 30 dispenses water or ice such that the user does not need to open or close the refrigerator door.
As illustrated in FIG. 2, the dispenser housing 30 is depressed backwardly and inserted into the dispenser insertion hole 15 penetrating the outer door case 13 of the freezing chamber door 10. The dispenser housing 30 is inserted into the dispenser insertion hole 15 and subsequently attached to the outer door case 13 of the freezing chamber door 10 by an adhesive or a foaming agent C along the edges thereof. Paint or tempered glass is installed on a front surface of the outer door case 13 of the freezing chamber door 10.